2025-10-18 02:38

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Thailand has delayed renewing a Southeast Asian multilateral power trade deal due to local political changes, Malaysia’s energy minister said on Friday. The Lao PDR-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore (LTMS) Project to supply hydropower from Laos via Thailand and neighbouring Malaysia is now expected to be renewed in November, Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister Fadillah Yusof told Reuters. Sign up here. Thailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was removed by the Constitutional Court in August, with Anutin Charnvirakul appointed the following month. Malaysia is currently the chair of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Fadillah spoke to Reuters on the sidelines of the bloc's meeting of energy ministers on Friday. "It's not put on hold, but because of the political changes in the (Thai) government...that's why there's a bit of a delay on Thailand's side," Fadillah said. "November will be the signing and so the second phase of LTMS will be working after November, hopefully after they have signed that," he said, adding that Malaysia is already committed to it. The Thai energy ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside of business hours. The LTMS project is a precursor to the broader ASEAN Power Grid (APG) initiative, which aims to interconnect all its ten member states and is widely seen as one of the main ways to cut Southeast Asia's growing reliance on fossil fuels for power generation. “APG is the backbone of ASEAN. If we want to be one of the economic powerhouses in the world, we need energy,” he said. Significant progress is also being made on the Borneo Power Grid, Fadillah added. "By the end of this year, Sabah will be connected with Sarawak," he said, adding that West Kalimantan is already purchasing power from Sarawak, while Brunei’s connection is currently underway. The Philippines will also eventually join. Malaysia is also reducing its reliance on coal and increasing renewable energy capacity, Fadillah said. The country's power demand is forecast to rise 10% and 8%, respectively, in 2026 and 2027, driven by data centres and high demand industries, he added. Separately, Laos' deputy energy minister told Reuters that the country is considering halting electricity supply to cryptocurrency miners, as it seeks to redirect domestic power to industries that contribute more to economic growth. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/malaysia-says-multilateral-power-deal-delayed-by-thai-politics-renewal-expected-2025-10-18/

2025-10-17 23:38

Oct 17 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed avenues for expanding U.S. participation in Liberia's critical minerals sector in a meeting this week with Liberian Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti, the State Department said on Friday. Rubio and Nyanti met in Washington on Thursday to discuss deepening U.S.-Liberia bilateral relations and expanding U.S. commercial engagement in Liberia, State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement. Sign up here. "The meeting explored avenues for expanding U.S. participation in Liberia’s critical minerals sector with the aim of creating jobs and economic growth in both the United States and Liberia," Pigott said. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/rubio-liberian-minister-discuss-boosting-us-participation-liberias-critical-2025-10-17/

2025-10-17 23:09

Oct 17 (Reuters) - Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, a UK-based pricing and data research firm for energy transition minerals, has cut at least a fifth of its workforce in recent weeks, said three people familiar with the company. The 11-year-old firm had been rapidly expanding over the last couple of years alongside growing market interest in lithium, copper and other minerals needed for electric vehicles and other clean-energy uses. Sign up here. The layoffs include at least 40 people at Benchmark, the three sources said, out of a total workforce of 200 people. Two of the sources said affected departments included sustainability, sales and marketing. CEO Andrew Miller in an email to Reuters said the firm had undergone a "recent restructuring." He declined to comment further on Reuters questions regarding the reductions. "This process is part of our ongoing efforts to strengthen the quality and delivery of Benchmark's offering, focused around further investment in our technology and AI capabilities," he said. One source cited weak pricing for minerals, especially battery metal lithium, as a drag on Benchmark's business, whose clients include miners, battery makers and politicians. Lithium prices have plunged since their peak in 2022 due to slower-than-expected adoption of electric cars. In a research note Benchmark published on its website last week, the company said it expected a sharp decline in U.S. EV sales in the last quarter of the year. It added that other challenges such as high manufacturing costs and rising tariffs are prompting some carmakers to scale back EV production plans into next year. Privately held Benchmark last year bought EV market research firm Rho Motion, creating a combined company of 250 employees. In addition to lithium, Benchmark tracks prices and other market data for copper, cobalt, nickel, graphite, rare earths, manganese, fluorspar and phosphate. https://www.reuters.com/business/ev-supply-chain-data-firm-benchmark-mineral-trims-workforce-sources-say-2025-10-17/

2025-10-17 22:34

French minister supports World Bank devoting 45% of lending to climate goals Caroit disagrees with Bessent on climate approach, says she can work with him Climate issues to feature in France's G7 presidency in 2026, minister says WASHINGTON, Oct 17 (Reuters) - France will keep pressing the World Bank to maintain its climate finance agenda despite the Trump administration's pressure on the global lender to abandon it, the new French development minister Eleonore Caroit said on Friday. Efforts to address climate change also will feature heavily in France's presidency of the Group of Seven industrial democracies in 2026, Caroit told reporters on the sidelines of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund annual meetings in Washington. Sign up here. She was appointed on Sunday to the cabinet of newly reappointed French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu as junior minister for Francophonie, international partnerships and French people abroad, and rushed straight to Washington. Caroit said she discussed with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent the U.S. call for the World Bank to abandon the goal it set under the Biden administration to boost climate-related financing to 45% of its total lending from 35% previously. "So we obviously continue to support the 45% objective," Caroit said, adding that France wanted to keep targets that agree with the Paris climate accords that Trump abandoned for a second time in January. "And for us, climate is at the utmost importance because we're aligned with the bank's objective of development and job creation, but it has to be jobs on a livable planet. Otherwise, why even think of jobs," she said. POSSIBLE AREAS OF AGREEMENT In 2023, World Bank President Ajay Banga persuaded the bank's shareholders to adopt a new vision statement with similar language: "A world free of poverty on a livable planet" to incorporate its new climate financing push and expanded balance sheet. Bessent, who has derided the statement as "vapid, buzzword-centric marketing," on Friday called on the World Bank to return to financing of coal projects, along with gas, oil and nuclear energy. In a statement to the IMF steering committee, Bessent said the 45% climate "co-benefits" target "skews projects away from country priorities and distorts projects away from the goal of increasing access" to reliable energy. "I think what is important is to have frank conversations and see where the disagreements are," Caroit said. She added that she was encouraged by Bessent's engagement on energy sources and that he was open to renewable energy where it made economic sense. Caroit said the U.S. and France, which has more than 50 nuclear reactors generating more than 70% of the country's electricity, agree on nuclear power's status as a sustainable energy source. The new minister also said France and the U.S. can agree on climate adaptation and resilience development projects that prevent floods or wildfires, which can impact economic growth, and that may ultimately lead to energy transitions. These projects fall under the World Bank climate finance goals. "This is what we call climate and they can call it however they want," Caroit said. She said the U.S. and France disagree on climate and many other principles, but both countries will work towards getting more from development in an era of tight fiscal budgets, especially for France. "We all acknowledge that there's a need to rethink the whole architectural and financial structure if we want to preserve the most essential development and to have more impact," Caroit added. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/cop/france-will-not-give-up-world-bank-climate-goals-minister-says-2025-10-17/

2025-10-17 22:16

Uncertainty overshadows annual meetings of IMF, World Bank IMF committee chair sees enduring power in institution New Zealand finance minister sees ongoing commitment to cooperation WASHINGTON, Oct 17 (Reuters) - International Monetary Fund chief Kristalina Georgieva on Friday said she hoped the U.S. and China could ease trade tensions and avoid a cutoff in the flow of rare earths to the global economy that she said would have a "material impact" on growth. Such a scenario would exacerbate uncertainty and hurt an already weakened global growth picture, Georgieva told reporters after a meeting of the IMF's steering committee, where member countries voiced concerns about a host of risks facing the global economy. Sign up here. This year's annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank took place days after a fresh flare-up in a simmering trade war between the world's two largest economies that dominated discussions among thousands of finance officials and central bankers from around the world. The IMF on Tuesday forecast global real GDP growth at 3.2% for 2025, up from a July forecast of 3.0% and a more severe April forecast of 2.8%, saying tariff shocks and financial conditions had proven more benign than expected. That did not reflect the latest threats raised by the U.S. and China. Georgieva said the IMF would keep a careful eye on developments, but noted that members were generally relieved that the global economy had proven more resilient than feared just six months ago. Countries were ready to "roll up their sleeves" to strengthen fundamentals, carry out regulatory reforms and tackle persistent global imbalances, although they remained deeply unsettled, she said. "There is also still a sense of anxiety, because the performance of the world economy is less than we need it to be, and because there is a very dark cloud of uncertainty still holding lower our heads, and that uncertainty has become now the new normal." Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan, who chairs the International Monetary and Financial Committee, said members engaged in a candid exchange of views despite their differences. "The mood was actually very positive, and there is an appreciation of the value that this committee and institution brings as a convening power to resolve problems that no one country can resolve on its own," he said. New Zealand Finance Minister Nicola Willis told Reuters that her country still saw real strength in the multilateral institutions and global trade rules. "What's come through, both in my bilateral meetings and the meetings with the IMF and World Bank, is that despite that uncertainty around the U.S. trade position, there is an ongoing commitment to multilateral organizations, to the free trade agreements that countries already have together, or as regions," she said. France's new development minister, Eleonore Caroit, said the meetings showed continued support for financing development. "I don't want to be overly optimistic, because obviously we have clear differences of approach and of understanding with regards to climate, but I do believe that there is a way to work towards important changes that are needed," she said. TRADE TENSIONS, GLOBAL IMBALANCES AMONG CONCERNS Al-Jadaan issued a chair's statement - not a communique that would have required consensus - that reflected concerns about growing trade tensions, advances in artificial intelligence and shifts in global markets, while holding out hope for resilient growth and continued disinflation. The statement from the IMFC, which represents the crisis lender's 191 member economies, also flagged downside risks from low economic growth, high debt, extreme weather events, excessive global imbalances and wars. "Major policy shifts in trade and other areas are reconfiguring global markets and policy frameworks, heightening uncertainty," it said. "These changes, as well as transformative forces such as digitalization and demographic shifts, bring challenges but also opportunities." The statement predicted continued disinflation, but with variations across countries. IMF executives this week noted that countries imposing tariffs, such as the U.S., faced potentially higher inflation for longer, while some Asian economies such as China risked deflation. The statement also stressed the need for independent central banks to maintain policy credibility. "Central banks remain strongly committed to maintaining price stability, in line with their respective mandates, and will continue to adjust their policies in a data-dependent and well-communicated manner," the statement said. It also called for tackling financial vulnerabilities and risks by "strengthening surveillance of systemic risks stemming from AI, non-bank financial institutions and digital assets, while harnessing the benefits of financial and technological innovation." https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/imf-steering-committee-eyes-risks-hopes-more-disinflation-2025-10-17/

2025-10-17 21:55

Apollo, Delta back Mexican full-service carrier Aeroméxico set to return to public markets after over two years Legacy airline emerged from bankruptcy in 2022 Oct 17 (Reuters) - Grupo Aeroméxico said on Friday it was targeting a valuation of up to $2.92 billion in its U.S. initial public offering, as the Mexican carrier looks to go public again after over two years. Mexico City-based Aeroméxico and some of its existing shareholders are seeking up to $234.5 million by offering 11.7 million American Depositary Shares priced between $18 and $20 each. Sign up here. Mature companies often seek a return to public markets after a successful reorganization under bankruptcy. Aeroméxico filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2020 with $2 billion in debt, as the pandemic hammered travel demand. Backed by alternative asset manager Apollo Global (APO.N) , opens new tab and U.S. carrier Delta (DAL.N) , opens new tab, Aeroméxico has since bounced back after emerging from bankruptcy in 2022. Private investment fund PAR Investment Partners intends to purchase $25 million of Aeroméxico shares in a concurrent private placement at a per share price of 95% of the IPO price. Aeroméxico is one of the older names in the IPO pipeline, having publicly filed paperwork in May 2024. Chile-based LATAM Airlines returned to the New York Stock Exchange in July 2024 after a $456 million IPO. PUBLIC MARKETS RETURN Founded in 1934 as Aeronaves, the legacy airline was nationalized by the Mexican government in 1959. It started operating under the commercial name "Aeroméxico" in 1971. Aeroméxico was state-owned for decades until 2007, when an investor consortium led by Citigroup (C.N) , opens new tab acquired it for about $250 million following a fierce bidding war against the Saba family. The full-service carrier initially went public in 2011 and traded on the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) until 2022, when it delisted as part of its bankruptcy restructuring. Aeroméxico, focused on business and leisure passengers, competes with low-cost carriers Volaris (VOLARA.MX) , opens new tab and Viva Aerobus. Barclays, Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan and Evercore are the joint lead book-running managers. Aeroméxico plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "AERO." https://www.reuters.com/business/aeromxico-backers-aim-raise-235-million-us-ipo-2025-10-17/